Small Potatoes

Home for the weekend

2010-05-29T09:57:00.010-04:00

Bright and Simple

2010-04-29T22:07:00.006-04:00

Roasted asparagus was mentioned in the frittata post but I just can't get enough. Once they're cooked, I eat them like French fries, and accompanied by one of my favorite things - roasted tomatoes - you really can't go wrong. I'd eat the two things on a plate with a hunk of bread and a slab of butter. That would be for a meal alone, so I guess I had to think of something else instead:
Here is everything roasted after about 20 minutes, maybe less, at 450 degrees. They have different roasting times, I suppose, but 15-20 minutes was fine.

Whole wheat pasta, sauteed spinach, blob of ricotta. YES.

Guest Cook!

2010-04-27T23:12:00.004-04:00

Well, he's not exactly a guest. And who am I kidding? I don't do ALL of the cooking around here. There are some nights, like tonight, when I'm so tired and drained of all normal human capabilities that I send out a message such as this one: im hugnry pls cooktonite. Luckily for me, there's someone on the other end of that message who usually follows through with quite an impressive dish. In precise order, Karl listed the ingredients of his new favorite meal to make as I unpacked my swim bag and collapsed on the couch. I had him repeat everything once we were sitting down to eat because, again, I was incapable of accurately listening (oops, I sat in the steam room too long at the Y). So, here it is, "Down-home jamboree freestyle cookin'" as Karl called it. "It's fried rice; appropriated from random stuff." Ah, yes, random stuff indeed:
Onion, garlic, carrot, oil: saute. Add cut up chicken breast, peas, and cook. Add precooked rice, dried basil, salt, pepper, Tabasco sauce, and a small dash of honey. Oh! Add some chopped walnuts in there with the rice for a nice crunch.
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!

I've been baking bread...

2010-04-18T00:59:00.008-04:00

I've been baking bread all week like a crazy woman and today was just more of the same. Pictured is the loaf I made with white flour fresh out of the oven. I'll try to run you through this very easy, delightful process:
Pictured above is bread dough using whole wheat flour and below (I tried to get these damn pictures to show up side by side but Blogger didn't want to grant me such a privilege) is dough with regular all-purpose flour. This is what the dough looks like after rising for eight hours. For each batch, I mixed 3 cups flour, about 2 teaspoons kosher salt, about 1 teaspoon dry instant yeast, and 1 and a 1/3 cups lukewarm water. Once the ingredients are mixed, cover the bowl with plastic wrap. They should sit until the dough doubles in size, so in this case, about eight hours. I managed to completely rearrange my bedroom during this time, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend this.

After the first rise (described above in the bowls), remove the dough from the bowl and place it on a floured surface. Also, flour a towel or cloth napkin (like the ones pictured). Fold the dough a few times to shape it and cover it with flour. Then place it in the floured towel and wrap loosely. The wrapped dough should sit for about 2 hours (I watched an episode of The Tudors). At about 1-1.5 hours into the second rise, preheat the oven to 475 degrees and also place a large oven-proof pot in the oven. I used my relatively new dutch oven (was told that it's best for baking bread) that I found at the Brooklyn Kitchen for $42.50!!
Once the oven is preheated and it has been about two hours (or the dough has clearly risen), unwrap the towel and carefully place the dough in the pot or dutch oven covered (you don't have to cover it, but I have bad luck with oven smoke and smoke alarms and the lid seems to prevent this). After about 30 minutes (your house/apartment/closet/shack will start to smell like BREAD), remove the bread from the oven. It should pop right out! Let it cool. Eat. Eat. Eat.

Article: Life of the Restaurant Critic

2010-04-15T13:39:00.005-04:00

I don't usually post articles, but I read about food on a daily basis - during those short minutes between lunch and back to work, or a quick read in the morning as I sip my coffee - and find most food-related articles entertaining, well-written, and appetite-inducing.

This week's article by Sam Sifton, the New York Times' restaurant critic, elaborates on what we all imagine a food critic's life to be. It seems there's a lot more than just eating good food all of the time. He runs everywhere to keep the pounds off - even from restaurant to restaurant - takes the stairs, and bikes. As someone who has a job that can be nicely tucked away after 6pm, or on those ever-shrinking weekends, it's hard for me to wrap my head around a job that fully dictates one's diet and lifestyle.

Anyway, it's an appetizing read that had me considering a second lunch. I went for a walk instead.

Roasted asparagus frittata and that car-shaped bread

2010-04-10T16:24:00.002-04:00

There was some roasted asparagus hiding in the fridge this morning (ahem, afternoon) and I'd almost forgotten about it. Initially, I wanted to make a quiche, but had also almost forgotten about the bread I made, and needed to use it up (quiche and bread for breakfast? too much for me). To the frittata I added 1 shallot, 4-5 chopped up roasted asparagus spears (roasted for 10 minutes with salt, pepper, oil at 450), cheddar, and grated parmesan. Mix ingredients with 3-4 eggs, salt and pepper. Pour into skillet and let it cook until the edges start to cook and the middle starts to simmer a bit. Then place in 350 degree oven until the eggs are puffy and starting to brown around the edges.

Bread time

2010-04-10T16:17:00.002-04:00

We were out of bread, so I made some. This loaf kind of looks like a '98 Toyota Camry.
Num, num, num! It's stale now, so I will probably make bread pudding.

Pecan Squares (oh my!)

2010-04-05T23:37:00.004-04:00

Yeah, these pecan squares are a new favorite. I don't usually post desserts because, as I mentioned in my tart post, baking makes me delirious.
However, with the much needed help of my friend, Angie (featured stirring the pecan mixture), I was able to get through this particular dessert-making process unharmed (Total lie. I burned my forearm and now have a hideous scar.)
You, my loyal reader, won't be surprised to know that this is not my recipe. It is Ina Garten's. Because she is a genius. Although, next time I'll try the recipe without the lemon and orange zest. I might want to make it more salty-sweet instead of sweet-sweet-sweet.

Bolognese for Days

2010-04-05T23:15:00.003-04:00

This should last a few days, no? There are three other containers in the fridge. Needless to say, I went a little crazy tonight making bolognese.

At the kitchen on Sunday, someone asked what I enjoy making the most and, not prepared for the question, I blurted out sauces. It seems my subconscious was right because the more I thought about it, the more accurate my answer. When I was a kid - oh maybe between the ages of 8-10 - I loved making "mixes" or "potions" - I'm not sure what I called them. They weren't for eating but for the simple pleasure of combining ingredients at random; ketchup, maple syrup, chocolate syrup, gummy bears, dirt, milk, you name it. Now that I can combine ingredients and make them taste good, well, it's much more pleasurable.

One thing remains the same and that would be the mess. Someday next month I'm sure to find an old splattering of bolognese hiding behind the coffee maker or on top of the fridge. By then, it'll be time for a new batch.

Double boiled eggs: a creamy, fluffy mass

2010-03-28T15:18:00.005-04:00

Coq au vin

2010-03-28T14:31:00.006-04:00

These little suckers are annoying to peel, which is why some people buy them prepackaged. I followed Julia Child's recipe fairly closely with the exception of a couple ingredients, such as cognac. The onions are sauteed in butter (approx. 2 tb) for close to 30 minutes, at which point you get:
It was hard to keep the onions from losing their form; many of them wanted to break apart.
Into the pot they go with browned mushrooms, bacon (duck bacon!), broth, more butter and oil, thyme, bay leaf, five cut-up chicken pieces (what you would use for fried chicken) and, of course, red wine. One thing I learned was that you don't have to use a nice ($10-$12) bottle of Cote du Rhone for the recipe. Instead, the man at the wine store advised me to use a "drinkable" red wine and even suggested a box wine called Bandit ($6-7). He told me that too many people think they have to cook with nicer wines for stews. Bandit was actually better than some red wines I've had and it has 30% more than a bottle!

Once everything cooks together for at least 30 minutes, the chicken is taken out and the sauce is thickened with flour and more butter. The chicken is placed back in until fully cooked. I prepared the onions and mushrooms the night before so that I'd have enough room on the stove top. Other than the preparation and overall cooking time, this dish is one of my favorites and oh-so rewarding.

A Vegetarian Mouthful

2010-03-21T22:30:00.012-04:00

Kelly gave me one watermelon radish and a bag of wheat berries; two things I've never cooked. The hand-off was perfect timing because I've been meaning to post a vegetarian meal. The last few posts have been either meat-heavy and/or just heavy. Plus, I knew coq au vin was in the forecast this week (post to come), so I wanted to start the week off with something healthy and meat-free.
Wheat berries are usually added to things, like salads or breads, but I was willing to try them as a simple, flavorful, mound on my plate. After they cook for about an hour, wheat berries are chewy with a bit of a crunch.
At first I wasn't sure if I should roast the watermelon radishes, or boil, or saute. I settled on sauteing (with a diced shallot, green pepper, and butter) and they were cooked through within ten minutes.
I knew I would need something more than just a grain and sauteed vegetables. As my last post mentioned, I enjoy large amounts of Parmesan, so I looked up a quick topping (technically, it was under "dips"); Mark Bittman has you roast a small eggplant at 500 degrees until they look like the picture. Then, let them cool, remove the skins, chop them up really well until the eggplant chunks resemble mush. Add 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese, a little oil, a squeeze of a lemon (or in my case, lime juice) and pepper. As a larger portion, prepared in a food processor as opposed to with a soup spoon, this dip would be quite tasty on warm pita bread.

So, here it is. The dip, admittedly, looks awkward but I assure you it was exactly what the wheat berries needed - a little oomph!

2010-03-16T00:03:00.003-04:00

Tonight called for one thing and one thing only - my favorite combination, my comfort food of choice these days, and above all, something of ease. It wouldn't usually look anything like the picture. It'd be a mound of noodles slathered with cheese and topped with a heaping helping of steamed spinach (then add another mound of Parmesan to that.) It's actually somewhat embarrassing typing that out. Like a confession. There's only one person who knows how to properly prepare it for me and he'll go unnamed.

Certainly, there are worse things to have on a regular basis, which brings me to the twist I put on my Mondays-suck-so-I'll-drown-my-fatigue-and-dread-in-pasta-and-cheese dinner: Alfredo sauce, sauteed spinach with garlic, a non-dieter's amount of Parmesan cheese, and, as you can see, lasagna noodles (I didn't realize until I opened the box that the noodles were non-boil!)

I did learn to add a bit of flour to an Alfredo sauce, which helped, but everything else was done in a haze, as an afterthought to so many other thoughts swirling around in my Monday brain. I didn't even bother taking a picture of the post-oven lasagna. Let's just say it resembled something you'd want to stick your face in and eat...privately. Luckily, someone joined me.

Texas: health's vacation

2010-03-11T23:24:00.004-05:00

Well, I didn't cook this. I'm deviating from my blog's flow (flow?) Sorry.

I'm happy to report that the sampler plate above was split between three people, though I did happen to notice a number of diners picking away at an entire plate on their own. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. The majority of my Texas vacation was spent eating food at otherwise non-eating hours on otherwise too large of plates. I ate and ate. Even fast food, but I won't go into that.

All kidding aside (actually, not kidding, I ate a lot), Texas has no doubt the best enchiladas and barbecue I think I've ever had (other than my Pop's barbecue in Memphis, of course). The featured plate of various meats (you can't seem them, but ribs are hiding under the sausage and brisket) was found at Ironworks in Austin. My aunt and uncle from Indiana (uncle is originally from Texas) said that it was some of the best barbecue they had yet to find in Austin and I would agree.

The first meal I cooked upon returning to New York was a healthy, vegetarian, vegetable-loaded soup. Within the week, I hope to post something new and exciting that may or may not have something to do with a restaurant idea I thought of today. Suspenseful, isn't it?

(PS: Karl wants me to mention that the aforementioned enchiladas were, specifically, from Pico's Mex-Mex in Houston.)

English breakfast with a side of dogs

2010-02-14T12:24:00.008-05:00

We are house sitting in Chelsea this weekend and taking care of two BIG collies. They are fluffy and sweet. Scout (above) mostly flops on the couch and cuddles. Sadie follows me around and begs for food. I'm also taking advantage of Amy and Ben's kitchen, so today I made an English breakfast for my valentine.
I woke up early to find one thing: Heinz beans. As you can see, I technically found what I was looking for (after going to five different places) but this isn't exactly what I needed. The original can is blue with black lettering; a label that looks like it was made in the forties and never really changed. The beans I found are pretty much the same except vegetarian.
We took the dogs to Union Square yesterday, to the dog park, and then I needed some things at the farmers market.

It's basically a plate full of grease and cholesterol which, I promise you, is delicious.
This is Sadie. She knows what cholesterol smells like.

Cooking up a (snow) storm

2010-02-10T16:43:00.011-05:00

A couple years ago, I was disappointed to hear that multi-tasking can have detrimental effects and no one should attempt it, which is too bad because I'm pretty damn good at it. Today, while working-from-home in the midst of Blizzard 2010, I made the following:
These are kumquats split in half with the seeds removed. Bring to a boil 3 times, with 3 separate batches of water. Then make a simple syrup to cover boiled and drained kumquats. Jen at Liddabit taught me this.
I'd used this poach pod to make mini omelets a while back, but I'd yet to actually poach an egg in it. Does it work?
Here's what the reduction looks like. Sweet, tangy, a little bitter, mmmm!
It works!
Oh, right. I almost forgot. I made rice pudding, too.

And hollandaise sauce...

Vegetarian Soup and Grilled Cheese

2010-02-08T21:16:00.006-05:00

The ingredients.
With crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, thyme, basil, bay leaf, etc...
Add the spinach. And vegetable broth. And parmesan rind.
I don't need to tell you how to make grilled cheese.

With a side of Netflix.

Fried "Green" Tomato Sandwich

2010-02-03T23:44:00.006-05:00

I was never a sandwich person. Well, that's not true - I lived off tuna sandwiches (with sprouts) as a kid. However, there was a time in my life when I opted for the salad, not the sandwich, and I guess I can say that that's no longer true. I love sandwiches - any size, shape, and most importantly, pretty much any kind. Recently, I was thinking about Fried Green Tomatoes (the movie), which got me thinking about fried green tomatoes, and this must have been while eating a sandwich, so... I... decided to make a fried green tomato sandwich. I managed to snag the greenest tomato I could find at the store, which is to say, it was mostly red. Nonetheless, it worked. This sandwich is important in two ways. The first is that it is dedicated to Lauren Z. because Fried Green Tomatoes was our movie growing up. We watched it endlessly, or so it seemed, and it featured two best friends (one blonde, one brunette). The other reason is that Kristy baked the bread! I can honestly say it was incredibly delicious and we gobbled up every last crumb. So, thank you.

Hungry and patient.

Back to cooking; piperade of vegetables with tomato sauce

2010-01-17T23:17:00.007-05:00

Whole tomatoes, vanilla, olive oil, garlic, basil.
Leeks, peppers, zucchini, fennel, cherry tomatoes.

Success.

Apple custard tart ( I can bake? )

2010-01-09T23:02:00.009-05:00

This crust. Oh, boy. I'm not even going to tell you what happened to my first attempt at a pie crust. Yes, this one is the second attempt. I'm very proud of it not because of how it looks, but how it tastes. Sure, I could've made it prettier with some kind of design but I was way too focused on just getting it to mold to the pie pan correctly.

There's something about baking that is altogether different from cooking. I have to say that I feel slightly more satisfied after having accomplished this today. On the other hand, I find that baking makes me delirious. At one point I thought I was coming down with the flu, but then figured out it was because I'd been standing around a 400 degree oven all day.

This pie is roughly based on Julia Child's Tarte Normand Aux Pommes.

Stuffed Dates

2010-01-09T14:42:00.004-05:00

This is the only picture I managed to take, so there's no "after" shot. Sorry. I think my camera was running out of batteries, but most likely I got caught up in eating these - dates stuffed with blue cheese and wrapped in bacon - that I...forgot. These were actually for my co-workers, all eight of them. The dates were a hit, and over a game of flip-cup I mistakenly promised to cook more often for the office. I might have even promised to cook once a week...

Anyway, these are extremely easy to make. Cut dates in half. Remove the seed. Stuff liberally with cheese so that the cheese is peeking out of the fruit. Sprinkle with freshly ground pepper. Perhaps do what I did and dip in sage oil for extra flavor. Wrap half a slice of bacon around the date. Pierce with a toothpick. Gather all assembled dates and place in baking pan or sheet with sides that will keep the grease from overflowing. Bake for 30-40 minutes at 375. After 20 minutes, turn over for even cooking.

Peas and lemon cream

2010-01-05T23:13:00.002-05:00

After a nice at-home yoga session with Angie (we listened to Donovan and sipped tea, too), I didn't feel like leftover potato soup. I still had some mushrooms left from the party, and peas, and cream. A while ago, a friend passed Nigela's recipe for lemon linguine on to me. It's a simple, yet sophisticated dish. Not too creamy, not too lemony. Well, without looking at the recipe, I just whipped up my own version, tossed in some peas, mushrooms, and sliced some leftover baby tomatoes. You can't really see the lemon cream sauce in this picture, but it's there. And it's mighty tasty.

New Year, New Recipes

2010-01-03T17:31:00.002-05:00

After hosting a fairly large dinner party last night, I didn't think I'd have the energy or desire to cook today or... anytime soon. Well, as you can see, I was wrong. After a lazy day cleaning up the last bits of the party, I had the urge to make yet another soup. I hadn't been outside, and still haven't, so a warm, hearty soup sounded like a good excuse to remain inside. I had about five peeled potatoes leftover, and a pound of unused mushrooms. Kind of a no-brainer and certainly not a difficult soup to make, but if you want something simple and filling, perhaps try my very own recipe (!!!). Oh and rosemary-asiago crostinis!

Potato-mushroom soup:
5-6 peeled and chopped potatoes
1/2 pound pound halved mushrooms
4 cups chicken broth (but you'll have to estimate a little depending on how thick you want it)
1 chopped yellow onion
3 cloves garlic
2 tb butter
1/4 cup olive oil
1 bay leaf
thyme
s + p

Simmer onions and garlic in oil until translucent. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add broth, simmer. Add potatoes, thyme, more s + p, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, or until potatoes are cooked through and soft. Meanwhile, saute mushrooms in butter until soft, but not fully cooked through. Add mushrooms to soup, add s + p to taste. Let the soup simmer for a while ( I went off and did something for about 20 minutes). Turn off heat, let sit for a while (I made the crostinis while the soup cooled a bit). While the crostinis are toasting in the oven, blend the soup. I use an electric hand mixer. Serve!

Rosemary-asiago crostinis
I used a day-old baguette. Cut into slices. Drizzle with your choice of oil (olive, grape seed, herb-infused), pepper, few sprigs of rosemary, and freshly shaved asiago. Toast for 5 minutes or until brown and toastyyy.

Steak.

2009-10-28T21:49:00.004-04:00

Seared steak topped with caramelized onions and melted goat cheese. I drizzled balsamic vinegar and honey over the butternut squash and roasted it for about 40 minutes.

What can we make for breakfast? Pear Pancakes.

2009-10-24T22:31:00.005-04:00

I didn't think breakfast would go beyond a bowl of cereal this morning. It was a rainy Saturday, and we'd spent the night out late. To my surprise, we were able to whip up something more memorable than Cocoa Pebbles. The strawberries had a day or two left at most, and the baby pears had been stuffed in the fridge all week. And what's pancakes and strawberries without powdered sugar? Karl made the pancakes, and I waited eagerly to top them off just minutes before I headed to Sweet Deliverance.

Alia's Eggplant Parmesan

2009-10-02T12:28:00.007-04:00

Alia is a dear friend of mine, and this Eggplant Parmesan is based on her recipe. She calls for ricotta cheese sandwiched between eggplant layers, but I decided to use what I had in my fridge: Comte. It is nowhere close to ricotta, but it's one of my favorite cheeses, and it never fails to delight. I had a really hard time getting a good picture of this dish - just don't think it's very photogenic.

Anyway, Alia and I met at Emerson during our second year. We were in a brain science class together, and got in trouble for talking (and laughing) too much during the lectures. We never really quieted down, and to this day she's one of my favorite people with whom to sit around and laugh. Now that we live in different cities, it's harder to have our laughing sessions, so tonight this delicious eggplant parm is dedicated to my friend in Boston. See you soon, Alia!

Steamed Artichoke, Carrot Soup

2009-10-01T22:11:00.006-04:00

A nice pair, don't you think? I made this carrot soup for Lauren on Tuesday, and had some leftover for tonight. Artichokes always remind me of my mom. She made them frequently when I was growing up, and it took me a couple of decades to actually try them...and like them. One night back in Boston, still in college, I called her because I had no clue how to cook artichokes. She told me exactly her method, and to this day, I pretty much do what she said: season the simmering water with salt and pepper, add some olive oil, a little balsamic vinegar, juice half a lemon over the artichoke, and place a slice on top so as to keep it nice and green in color, simmer artichoke for about 30 minutes, covered.

Don't Sweat It, Roast It

2009-09-30T17:28:00.004-04:00

I never intended for tomatoes to be a running theme, but I'm also not bothered that they seem to be featured in just about every photo so far. After all, they're best during the summer months, and can be used in cooking in such a variety of ways. This particular dish was made for my mom's last night in Brooklyn on a recent visit. Roasted cherry tomatoes drizzled with olive oil, and topped with crumbled blue cheese. Needless to say, my mom was impressed.

GIANT BREAD

2009-09-30T17:23:00.001-04:00

A free loaf from Farine after a day working at the first New Amsterdam Market of the season. I cut the loaf in half, and then again, and again once more. There's still some in my freezer. If you come over for dinner, maybe you'll get to taste it.

A Sweet Deliverance Recipe: kale, sausage, potato soup

2009-09-30T17:10:00.002-04:00

On Sundays, I've been interning at the Sweet Deliverance kitchen in Brooklyn. I made this soup there with the chef's supervision, and then went home to make it myself!

Saturday Morning Three Cheese Omelette

2009-09-30T16:59:00.003-04:00

It's always a pleasant surprise when you wake up on a Saturday and realize you have everything you need to make a delicious breakfast. Goat cheese, piave, and parmesan, cherry tomatoes, Boston lettuce, and local Brooklyn pita were all waiting patiently in my fridge to be used. A few years ago, I could not make an omelette for the life of me. As you might have experienced, they always turned into an odd serving of scrambled eggs. Well, after several Food Network shows about omelettes, and watching my parents make them while asking, "So, what's your trick to omelettes?", I finally got it. Don't get me wrong, every Saturday morning doesn't start with such an elaborate meal, but I try.

Momma's Eggplant

2009-09-30T16:50:00.002-04:00

Before I left for my train back to New York, my mom handed me a bag full of veggies and herbs from her garden. This mini eggplant hung around my apartment for a few days because it was just too cute to eat. I finally sliced it up as an addition to a salad. I'm just glad I took a picture of it.

Front Row Tomato and Basil Salad

2009-09-30T16:39:00.001-04:00

While it may look like a side dish, this tomato and basil salad was the only thing I managed to prepare on the plate. The rice was Near East, and the chicken was bought prepared. These tomatoes are from a friend's garden in Connecticut.

August Was Hot! Gazpacho.

2009-09-30T16:33:00.005-04:00

This is my first gazpacho. I grew up watching my dad throw together soups like this. He'd call it gazpacho, or a cold summer soup, or maybe it'd just end up being salsa. While at the store shopping for ingredients, I called him. "Dad, what do I need for gazpacho?!" He told me "really whatever you want to throw in," but then proceeded to list exact ingredients like: peppers, cilantro, 1 can of crushed tomatoes, several varieties of fresh tomatoes, onions, garlic, etc. I got home with a bag full of ingredients, and received a text from him: "AND CUCUMBER". Luckily, I'd bought one.